Oxymorons: Romeo and Juliet

Explore the world of oxymorons through one of Shakespeare’s most most famous tragedies. Includes discussion questions to help students dive into the language of the play, and the features of Romeo’s speech.

Close Reading: The Tomb Scene

Introduce your students to close reading as they look deeply at Romeo’s motivation in breaking into Juliet’s tomb. Students will then get on their feet and perform the scene, based on what they have learned. Teacher instructions and student worksheet included.

Dramatic Readings: Capulets vs. Montagues

Get your students on their feet to explore conflict in the world of Romeo and Juliet through some simple line readings. This activity includes discussion questions to help students think about the performance of Shakespeare. Includes teacher instructions.

Annotating Macbeth

Have students work together as we dig deeper into the text of one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. This three page resource walks students through how to annotate, what to look for, and provides examples of some annotated text.

Shakespeare’s Language of the Theatre

Shakespeare wrote specifically for the theatre and this activity looks at location, emotion and action in an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet. Good to develop an understanding of writing for the specific context of an Elizabethan playhouse.

Early Modern English vs Modern English

This resource outlines the major differences between the English Shakespeare wrote – what language historians call Early Modern English – and the English we speak today, Modern English. Includes a short practical activity to deepen understanding, and an answer sheet.

Shakespeare’s Idioms – Quoting Shakespeare

Although Shakespeare wrote his plays and poems some 400 years ago, many of his expressions are still familiar to us today – we regularly speak Shakespeare without realising it. Take a look at this short text by journalist Bernard Levin, “On Quoting Shakespeare”.